The Eternal Night
by But I Have Promises To Keep
Summary: When a killer who hunts at night strikes during a power outage, sometimes its better to stay close in the dark.
1. Hour 1

**Hey, just a quick question (and I feel stupid for asking this since it's probably obvious) but has anyone else not been receiving fanfiction alert emails? I haven't gotten any notifacation emails for a week now, and I know I should at least be getting them for chapter updates. This is a problem I've had before, but it usually resolves itself after a few hours. It's been several days, does anyone know how to fix it? It's rather annoying.**

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><p>"Fallon, Williams, my office" Captain Yeong called as she walked by. Giving quick confused glances at each other, they followed behind her. They were surprised to see her barely looking at them as they entered, fussing with some sort of file on her desk.<p>

"So what's up?" Mal asked, and as an answer she flopped a file down in front of them. It was an old file, the ink bearing the name faded and dusty. All Mal had to do was glance at the faded cover before he swore under his breath. Natara looked at him, confused.

"I take it I don't have to explain it to you then?" she said.

"No" Mal said, grabbing the file and about to head out the door already.

"One other thing though" Captain Yeong said quickly. Mal froze. "As much as I don't like the idea…Amy and Kai are coming with you".

Mal whipped around "Are you serious? Do you want them to die?".

Captain Yeongs eyes narrowed. Since Kens death, any word along the lines of 'dead' was practically considered a disgusting swearword. This made work rather difficult, concerning they said these words every day. But up until this point, no one realized how much they really said it. It was if the word had taken on a whole new meaning. "Of course not, but we don't really have a choice. You're going to be stuck in there for the whole night, and you might need on sight forensics. I can't just send one of them…it's too risky. You need to stick together in pairs, no one can be on their own at any time".

Without another word Mal left, and after a confused moment Natara followed. "What was she talking about?" she asked as soon as they got out of Captain Yeong's office.

Mal sighed, plopping the old file down on a nearby table and facing her. "They call it 'the lockdown'" he said.

"What—?"

"About forty years ago, a family who lived in this house by the bay was murdered. Another family moved in, and ten years later to date they were killed too. At this time the police caught on, and when the next ten year anniversary came up a few cops were sent in. The killer only killed at night, so of course they stayed overnight to try and catch him. I was only starting out here, but if I remember correctly it was two cops undercover as a married couple. They didn't come back, and in the morning we found them dead inside the house, the doors locked from the outside. They nicknamed it the lockdown because in every case the victims were found in separate rooms, and both doors were locked. That's probably why Yeong wants us in pairs, since we're fairly certain he got them when they separated. They never caught the guy, and tonight must be the fortieth anniversary. I guess Yeong still thinks he can be caught".

"And you don't think he can?"

Mal shrugged "I figured the first killing was so long ago, that the guy's probably old or dead".

"You never know. He could have been a teenager the first time and be in his fifties now. It's uncommon at that age, but not unheard of. We could get lucky and get him, maybe in their older age they could slip up".

"Or we could get extremely unlucky and nothing happens, and Kai end up annoying the crap out if me the whole night".

They started to walk down to the crime lab, and Natara commented sarcastically "always the optimist".

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><p>It was later that night Amy, Kai, Mal and Natara drove down to the large and ominously aging house. The sky was dark with rain clouds, and thunder made every silence that followed seem awkward. Mal was the first to run in, unlocking the front door. Natara was next, trying to keep several files safe and dry by tucking them beneath her jacket. Amy and Kai came next, laden with several boxes of lab equipment. As they entered Mal quickly found a light switch, as thankfully the electric still worked. As they took off their wet jackets and brushed off the raindrops, no one said what every single one of them was thinking.<br>If he were alive, Ken would be here. He would be here to make sure nothing happened to Amy. The room seemed to be missing something, or rather someone, but no one said anything. They didn't need to. Mal had just turned and closed the door to keep the rain out when things made a turn for the worse. The lights flickered, and a whirring sound that no one had noticed before was no longer present. The power had gone out. There was an awkward moment when everybody froze, then a scuffling noise until someone lit a light. Natara had pulled out her gun, simply for the purpose to turn the flashlight on it on. The room was completely silent, as if everyone was holding their breath and waiting for something. Then, coming from down the hallway as if on cue, there was a scratching noise. With a slight nod to Natara, Mal drew his gun.

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><p><strong>Please review and tell me what you think so far?<strong>


	2. Hour 2

_Mal stared down at the woman who lie on the floor before him. Her head had been slammed multiple times on the tile floor, enough times that the skin had split and her skull was crushed. Her eyes were half-open and glassy, a halo of blood around her head._

_He couldn't even begin to think why this bothered him. He saw this kind of thing every day, and didn't even know the woman that well. But the fact that he knew her name seemed enough. Or maybe the fact that he had seen this woman, Christine, walk into the station just the morning before._

_"You alright Probie?" said a voice. Mal turned around to see an older officer, one he knew was soon retiring, approach. He looked down at Christine for a moment, staring into her cold dead eyes._

_"It ain't fun, is it Probie?" he said "Not fun losin' one of your own. Remember that, so hopefully next time it ain't you"._

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><p>Mal flipped on his flash light, flattening himself against the wall and sinking into the shadows. Natara had already done so, her eyes and flashlight the only thing visible in the darkness. They crept down what seemed to be the never-ending hallway, which took several turns before leading to a back door. Mal held one finger to his lips, which he wasn't sure Natara could see, and pointing at himself , then the door, to signal his next actions. Natara must have seen it in the dark, because she nodded slightly and positioned herself to back him up if necessary. Mal crept to the wooded door, trying to minimize the creaks the old floorboards made as he walked. He grabbed the handle and pushed, throwing the door open and pointing his gun at the entrance. Nothing was there. In fact, all Mal could see was a sheet of icy cold water raining down from outside. Then he felt something cold and damp touch his leg, and looked down to see a large yet mangy cat walk by. He closed the door a little more forcefully than he had to.<p>

"Freakin' cat…" Mal muttered, watching as the animal curled up in the corner as if it owned the place.

"Let's go" Natara whispered "I don't like leaving Kai and Amy alone in here, I don't even think they have any weapons".

Slightly less-carefully than before, they crept back through the halls. About half-way there, they could hear a few quick noises, like someone was stepping on twigs.

_Snap! Snap! Snap! Snap! Snap!_

"Amy! Kai!" Natara said, half whispering, half speaking. They ran through the halls at the point, raising there guns as they entered the room. Amy was over by the fireplace, and the box of matches she was holding went flying out of her hand and into a dark corner as she half threw it in shock. Kai looked momentarily shocked, then held his hands up in mock surrender.

"What was that?" Mal asked, looking for where the noise of the noise. His eyes locked on a recently-lit fire in the fireplace, which was crackling happily.

"It was cold" Amy said defensively "and there was wood in the rack in the corner".

"We thought you were being killed!" Mal exclaimed, holstering his gun. "We thought your necks were getting snapped, or who knows what!".

"It's fine" Natara said, stepping in to prevent a fight "the last thing we need is to fight, we're stuck in here until morning weather we like it or not".

"She's right!" said Kai, piping up. They all started at him. "In horror movies, someone's always killed after the characters fight. That, and when the blonde twists her ankle…". He trailed off when he saw everyone glaring at him.

"We should get some rest" Natara said quickly "I'll take first watch".

Since most of the room was devoid of any furniture, they ended up sitting along the wall in a row. It took Kai and Amy a while to fall asleep in this uncomfortable position, but they did eventually. Mal couldn't sleep, the only thing he could think of was Christine. Her greying blonde hair dyed red with blood, her killer long gone…

Eventually Mal couldn't take it anymore, and ended up sliding closer to Natara, looking at the files she was reading.

"Can't sleep?" she asked.

"Call me crazy, but the thought of a psycho that might kill us in our sleep isn't exactly comforting".

She smiled slightly, the only thing illuminating her face being the fire place on the other side of the room. "I'm starting to think you're right. Maybe the killer is gone, but still, look at this". She pointed to several pictures in a row, one being Christine, another being so old the paper was practically disintegrating. "in every case the method of killing is similar. All these were some sort of head trauma". She pointed to Christine, a woman with a gash on her head from the aged photo and a man with a axe in his skull from the second family. "These are all some sort of suffocation" she said, pointing to the remaining adult victims. This included Christine's partner, sheets tied around his neck, a man who was smothered with a pillow, and finally a woman with a cloth tied tightly to her face. "All the other victims, children or grandparents, were stabbed. It seemed he focused more on the married adults, but wasn't gender-specific for the killing method". Her head suddenly snapped up. "Did you hear that?".

"What?".

She held a finger to her lips, and Mal heard it.

_Thump…thump…thump._

The noise was deep and rhythmic, like a heartbeat. Amy and Kai jumped out of their sleep. Amy let out a small cry of shock. "Stay here" Mal whispered, getting up and drawing his gun. For some reason Kai took this as an invitation to follow Mal, but he allowed it. He tried to follow the noise, leading him down the long hallways until they came to the spot where they found the cat. The door was wide open, hanging outside and slamming against the siding. Mal knew he had closed it.

"What the—"

He was cut off by a scream. The high pitched and horror filled one of a woman. There were only two people in this house that could make that noise, and they were together.

"Nat! Amy!".

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><p><strong>Thanks so much for the reviews! And no, I couldn't resist another cliff hanger ;) Also, I promise I will do review replies soon. I have a disease…it's called laziness. I promise though I'll do it REALLY soon. Maybe next chapter?<strong>


	3. Hour 3

**Hey guys, just as a side note I do not own the song, it is by ****Akira Yamaoka. Is anyone awesome and know what movie it's from? It's called 'Room of Angel'. Anyways, I hope you guys really like the killer for this, sinse I spent a long time organizing his/her backstory. **

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><p><em>It was noon when the bodies were finally removed, and Mal could only watch as two sheet-covered stretchers were rolled out of the building.<em>

_"You just_ _can't save 'em all" the same detective that Mal has spoken to earlier said to no one in particular. "It's a shame, ain't it Fallon?" he said, and, now turning to face Mal. "You ain't gonna be a Probie for long, I know it. Just know when you lose one, it ain't the end of the world. You just can't save 'em all, and you can't dwell on it if you don't"._

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><p>The minute Mal turned the corner a noise sounded. A series of sharp clicks and then a clunk. After a tense moment a strange sort of music started playing, an ominous tune that sounded as if it were coming from a hurdy-gurdy.<p>

"Watch my back" Natara whispered to Amy. Amy nodded and Natara held her gun ready, carefully following the sound. The music grew louder, the chimes carrying down the hallway that Mal had not gone down. She crept past several closed doors and a staircase. When the door from which the music emanated neared, Natara whispered to Amy "stay here, call if you hear or see anything".

Amy nodded, hiding behind the staircase and melting into the shadows. Carefully, Natara entered the open door and scanned the room. It took her a moment to find where the music was coming from in the small and empty room. It was a small music box, the size of her fist and bronze-plated. It was open, and a small ballerina was spinning slowly inside of it. It was clearly old, the tune was slow and mournful, but it seemed that once it had been childishly cheerful. Natara scanned the room once more, seeing nothing, she holster her gun and went to close the box. The ominous music was starting to get to her, and it also made it harder to hear more sinister sounds. Before she could react she felt someone take her gun from its holster, and heard the door slam and lock. It happened so fast, that by the time she turned around she was lying on the floor, her arms pinned under her and her assailants knees digging into her ribs. She felt several fistfuls of some kind of fabric forced into her mouth and throat, and struggled to push it out before she suffocated. She fought hard to get her attacker off of her, trying to spit the fabric out of her mouth. For a second her airway was open, and she was able to let out a single strangled scream. A sharp blow to her throat cut her off, and her attacker stuffed the fabric in once more. Through all this there were only a few things that Natara realized. The knees that dug into her were bony, and sticking out from the ski mask covering her assailants face was a thin strand of long hair. Natara spasmed slightly, unable to take in another breath. She could feel her mind going hazy already, red veins creeping in her vision. The woman, which Natara now took her attacker as, pressed her knees harder into her ribs. It was obvious she was going to sit here and wait for her to suffocate. She could faintly hear someone calling her name, hear hands pound in the door, but this all seemed to be happening somewhere very far away. She could feel her fight and strength leaving her, and she shuttered under the woman's steady weight. Her head lolled slightly to the side, and through the fog that seemed to have entered her vision she could see something metal very close to her. At first she thought it was the music box, but after a moment of trying to get her eyes to focus she saw it was her gun. She struggled to free her trapped arm, which was pinned behind her back, and as soon as it was free she reached for her gun.

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><p>Amy waited in silence for what seemed like forever, until she heard the music stop and the door Natara just went through slam. "Natara?" she called, her voice sounding ominous in the now silent house. After a moment there was a scream, strangled and muffled. "Natara!" she called, running to the door and pounding furiously. She wiggled the handle, trying desperately to open it. But the door wouldn't budge, and everything had gone eerily silent inside. Somewhere far away she could hear someone call out to them.<p>

"Nat! Amy!".

It was Mal's voice, and after a second his and Kai's footsteps were audible, and Amy stepped away from the door so they could see where she was.

"Where's Nat?" Mal asked, seeing Amy was safe.

Speechless in horror, Amy pointed to the locked door. Mal tried several times to pry it open, all of which failed. Suddenly a gun shot sounded, and Mal ceased pounding at the door. There was a terrifying moment where all was silent, and no one really knew what to do. There was the sharp noise of a door being unlocked, then the knob very slowly began to turn.

Slowly, as if whoever is on the other side is trying to torture them with suspense, the door creaked open.

"Nat!" Mal said, breathing a breath of relief. She winced slightly as she moved as if she had several bruises on her ribs, had a cut below her eye and her lip was swollen and bleeding, but otherwise she was okay.

"You thought you'd get rid of me that easily?" she said, stepping out if the doorway. She was smiling slightly in spite of herself, clearly happy to be alive. "She went through a door to the left, but by the time I caught my breath she was long gone. I don't think I shot her, but the noise scared her away".

"She?" Mal said "It's a girl?".

And so Natara plunged into her story, and afterwards Mal peered in to check if the music box was still there.

"Gone" he said "she took it with her".

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><p>It was in a secluded room upstairs that the masked woman ran with her box. Gently, as if the box was a fragile infant, she sat it down on a small vanity table. In her hand was the ancient and disintegrating ballerina, which had broken in half and fallen off its perch.<p>

"Don't worry" she whispered softly to it as if it were alive "I won't let anyone hurt you again, I'll fix you". She grabbed a small box of miniature tools from the corner of the table, taking a small tube of glue and glueing the tiny torso back together. She carefully put a finger on the button that prevented the music to start, and returned the plastic girl to her perch, fixing her little lace skirt. She was singing very quietly as she worked, and the song matched the notes that the box played.

_"Here's a lullaby to close your eyes_

_It was always you that I despised._

_I don't feel enough for you to cry_

_Here's a lullaby to close your eyes"._

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><p><strong>Also, I know I really need to do some review replies (because all of them are AWESOME and made me smile so much) and I promise I will get around to it.<strong>


	4. Hour 4

**Hey, the only side note is the first section is set in the past, thus why it's in italics. That's pretty much it…on to review replies. I apologize if I miss anybody.**

**Mozzi-girl: ****Thanks so much! That really mean a lot!**

**Oryt: ****Thanks! I REALLY hope you like the backstory, I probably spent the most time on that then anything else for this story :)**

**Nat157s: ****Thanks so much! **

**CauseOfDeathIsGreat: Thanks!**

**maltararox21: OMG! That totally made my day! Thanks so much!**

**The Saracstic Polar Bear: Okay, that made me laugh way more than it should have. I got the review without the correction first and I was like "Not sure if intentional…or typo…". I'm sorry, that was just really funny! Auto correct fail?**

**TammylovesCOD: Thanks!**

**Writer101: I'll definatly read that later, thanks for the advice. The thing is, I struggle very much with writing straight-up fluff. I can fit it inside more action-filled FanFic's, but can't seem to write it itself. I will definatly check out that other fanfic, and see if I can pick up some tips for the future. Thanks!**

**Things In Ink: Thanks! I creep writing creepy stuff…does that sound weird?**

**Blackrose1827: Maybe, maybe not… :)**

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><p><span>March 1st, 1972<span>

_Sammi was ten, and technically shouldn't exist. She, her bother and his girlfriend were, in his words, 'Drifters'. In the words of other people, they where 'homeless'. But Alex, Sammi's brother, said that this was their home. That they had a right to be here. And Sammi thought that too, for she liked this house. Alex said it was new, that no one had moved in her yet. That they would just stay here for a little while, then leave and take any traces that they were here with them. Sammi liked that idea, but didn't want to leave. She had her own room, one that was warm, dry and large. She liked that she had her own place to set her music box, the only object she had left from before her parents deaths, and would proudly display it on a small vanity table that had been here when they came. There, in the evenings, she would pretend that this was her house. That she had always lived here, and she always would. She would open the box, winding it up and singing along the the chimes with words she couldn't remember being taught._

_"You lie, silent there before me._

_Your tears, they mean nothing to me,_

_The wind howling at the window,_

_The love you never gave,_

_I give to you,_

_Really don't deserve it,_

_But now, there's nothing you can do._

_So sleep, in your only memory"_

_"What are you doing?" Michelle asked one day. Michelle was Alex's girlfriend, and she seemed to come everywhere with them. Sammi despised her. She was eighteen, her brothers age, with lips as red as the lipstick they couldn't afford and thin platinum blonde hair. "You're supposed to be getting ready to leave! Not fooling around!". She stomped in, slamming the top of the music box shut. She had shut it so forcefully that the tiny ballerina broke in half at the hips, the tiny skirt flying off also. She stomped out of Sammi's room, not even looking back at her._

_For a moment Sammi only stared at the tiny broken ballerina, unsure what to do. Then she grabbed the heavy bronze box, and without thinking, chucked it at Michelle's head. It hit her square in the back of the head with sickening thump, splitting the skin and making her slump to the ground. She went very still, and Sammi very slowly approached her._

_"Michelle?" she called, grabbing one of her stick-like arms and shaking her. She did not move. "Michelle?"._

_"Sammi?" she heard her brothers voice call "Missy? It's time to go". Sammi heard her brothers heavy footsteps come up the stairs, turn the corner and stop as he saw her and Michelle._

_"You-you killed her" he said, stunned. Alex had never hit his sister, but at this point he raised a hand like he was. "I'll kill you you little—" but he was cut off by Sammi launching herself on top of him. Obviously, he was much stronger that she was, and quickly wrapped his arms around his sisters throat. She gasped for air for a moment, unable to breathe, until he seemed to realize what he was doing and released her. But Sammi imitated him as soon as he let go, wrapping her small hands around his neck and holding on tightly. He struggled for a moment, but Sammi knew he wouldn't fight back. That he wouldn't hurt his little sister. After Alex went very still she let go, looking down the still form of her brother._

_"Alex?" she said, as if trying to wake him up. "Alex?". But he didn't respond, and after a moment Sammi got up and fixed her dress. For some reason, she felt that this was good. This was a thrill. She had never felt so alive and in control, and now she could live here and never be taken away. She went downstairs and grabbed the little red wagon that they used to carry their possessions, and forced it up the stairs. It took her a long time to get Alex and Michelle's bodies into the wagon and down the stairs, and Sammi was exhausted when she was done. She got them outside, and quickly pushed them both into the bay's deep waters. She watched as they both floated away, Michelle turning the water crimson. She rinsed the wagon off with a hose from outside, and returned upstairs to clean the blood that Michelle had left. She cleaned the floor with a washcloth, as calm as if this were an everyday chore. She sang as she worked._

_"Here's a lullaby to close your eyes_

_It was always you that I despised._

_I don't feel enough for you to cry_

_Here's a lullaby to close your eyes"._

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><p>"We need to split up and find her" Natara whispered "it's our best chance. I'll take Amy, Mal-" she nodded towards him "you take Kai".<p>

For a moment he seemed like he was going to protest this pairing, but stopped and instead said "Yeah, because splitting up the last time worked out _so_ well".

"This is different. Amy and I'll take the staircase by where we found the cat and stay in the front part of the house. You and Kai take the back part" she turned to Amy "you said you have a map layout of the house, right?".

She nodded "only one copy though". She crossed the room and grabbed a large blueprint-like paper, handing it to Natara. Natara took it and tore it neatly in half, handing the part about the back part to Mal. "If anyone gets separated, make your way back here if you can. If whoever you're paired with doesn't come back for you or you're injured–" she stopped and pointed to the dying fireplace "take a few ashes and sprinkle them on the floor. One of us will come and look for you. Got it?". Everyone nodded and the two groups parted ways. Seeing Natara and Amy were going up a large staircase down the opposite hallway, Mal went up the twisting staircase by the room Natara had been attacked in and Kai followed. He figured they might be able to drive the girl downstairs, and maybe catch her then. It took forever to go up, as the stairs were creaky and it was essential to make as little noise as possible, but after a while they reached the top. The hallways were similar to the hallways downstairs, both were twisting labyrinths of walls and floors.

"Mal" Kai whispered sharply. Mal turned around to tell him to be quiet, but saw he was holding his flashlight, which he obtained from the boxes of lab equipment, to the ceiling. Above them lines ran across in a box, which Mal presumed was a hatch to an attic. A faint glow was coming from the crack, and after a quick silent nod to Kai, Mal stretched up to the low ceiling and grabbed the small finger holes embedded in the wood. After a few seconds of pulling, the square of wood swung off the ceiling. Attached to it was a latter, and after a moment of silent glances, Mal went first. He kept one hand on his gun, pushing on the bars with his wrist to go up. As soon as his head reached the top he looked around, seeing the room was devoid of any life and lit with a grimy oil lamp. He got out of the way for Kai to come out, and upon entering he looked around to what what Mal was staring at.

"Well that's creepy".

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><p>"Amy!"<p>

"What?" Amy said, looking around as if startled.

"Did you hear that?".

They were both silent for a second, until she heard someone's voice. Kai's she thought, but couldn't hear what he was yelling. She expected Mal's voice to follow, but it didn't. This worried her, were they separated? Was Mal injured or dead?

"Kai!" yelled suddenly, grabbing Amy's wrist as she began to run so she kept pace with her. Amy still couldn't hear what Natara obviously heard, but it was apparent that Mal and Kai were in trouble. "Mal! Kai! I'm coming! Hold on!".


	5. Hour 5

**OMG! Okay, I'm a 'now airing' player, so this might sound like** **old news, but they used Sarin gas in the now airing episode! I researched that for my story "Risk", and now if there are questions about it I don't have to guess! I'm exited, since all the stuff Natara said I already knew! (I also suspected it at the beginning with that Carl kid, but wasn't sure) Also, I forgot to add this but remembered when mozzi-girl said she listened to the song, but if you're interested in seeing what it sounds like its called 'Room of angels'. It's from the movie 'Silent Hill' and it's really creepy and cool! **

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><p><span>March 3rd, 1972<span>

_It was a rush as Sammi knocked on the front door to the large house she had once lived in on the bay. More specifically, her house. It was storming, and she was shaking both from nerves and cold. Eventually the door swung open, and a man with thinning hair stood in the doorway._

_"Can I help you?" he asked._

_"Please sir" said Sammi, widening her eyes and making her voice higher that normal "I'm lost, my parents and I were on holiday and I lost them. Can you help me?"._

_"Rick?" a woman's voice called "who is it?". Sammi heard the woman's clicking heels as she walked to the door. She peered out at Sammi, her face softening at the sight of her. "Who's this?" she asked._

_"Lost her parents, poor dear" the man called Rick said "I suppose we can drive her down to the police station, her parents are probably looking for her"._

_"Don't be silly!" she woman said "It's pouring down rain!" she smiled softly at Sammi and gestured for her to come inside "we'll take her down in the morning, she can just stay here tonight. Does that sound okay, sweetie?"._

_"Yes" said Sammi, smiling widely "that would be fine, thank you"._

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><p>Kai was right. This, in Mal's eyes, was indeed creepy. Photos lined the walls, making a timeline of everyone who had ever set foot in this house. There were people who had not been in the victims files, lined up perfectly as if in order. These photos covered the two walls to the left and back like oddly colored wallpaper. There was a small writing desk in the corner, on which the old oil lamp sat. Above it ten pictures were pinned to the wall. The first two were of the man and woman from the first murder. It looked as if it used to be one picture of them together, but had been torn apart. On each were shiny red 'X's, drawn on like blood. The next two were of the man and woman from the second murder, also looking like it was torn apart but also missing parts, and Mal figured the part that had shown the children was torn out. The red 'X's appeared once again in these, partially masking the faces. Christine and her partner were in the next two, their pictures clearly torn for a newspaper article. It was just like the others, torn and slashed with a red 'X'. It was the next few that we're the worse. Mal, Natara, Amy and Kai were up on the wall, their pictures unharmed and pinned up. But Kai's was the one that wasn't fully intact. His eyes were scratched out, as if the girl was terrified of him watching her.<p>

"Mal…"

Mal turned around, where Kai had found a picture on the floor. It was a drawing really, and clearly at least fourty years old. Mal couldn't see what it was of until he went up behind him.

"Oh. My. God".

It was Kai…but it _couldn't_ be Kai, the picture was too old. But they had the same hair, the same eyes. The only difference was the lack of glasses and tattoo. Written in curvy letters in the bottom, were names, two names to be exact.

_'From Michelle, To: Alex. Happy birthday!_'.

All of the letters were encased in a heart, all condensed in the bottom right corner.

"It looks just like you…" Mal whispered. "Put it back, we need to go find Nat and Amy. She obviously thinks you look like someone she knows, and who knows how she could react to that". With a slight nod Kai replaced the picture and Mal went down the latter first, keeping watch as Kai climbed down. They met nothing until they reached a balcony-like structure that overlooked the fireplace room. There, sitting on the banister, was the girl. Her mask was off, her long mousy brown hair knotted and dirty.

"Alex?" she said softly. Her voice was light and airy as if she wasn't really there, as if she was a ghost of some sort.

Mal was tempted to reach for his gun, which he had returned to his holster, but was afraid of setting her off.

"Who are you?" she said suddenly, her eyes narrowed at Mal. Mal opened his mouth to respond, but suddenly she said "Don't lie! You're gonna take me away! You're gonna take Alex away!". Suddenly she pressed her hands to her ears as if to block out a horrible noise "I didn't mean it! I didn't mean it Alex! I didn't mean to kill her!".

"Who?" Mal asked, trying to distract her so he could get out his gun, should he need to use it "Who did you kill?".

"Michelle!" she cried, whining like a small child "I didn't mean it! I didn't want to kill you Alex!".

Suddenly her eyes shot up, staring straight at Kai, who was looking at her seriously. "Don't look at me like that! Stop it!" she screamed, suddenly charging at Kai. Mal stepping in front, blocking her from him. But she was strong, and was able to push him off balance.

"Run!" Mal yelled to Kai, before the girl had pushed him down and pinned him with her knees "I'll hold her off, just run!". With a moment of hesitation, Kai ran. Mal could hear him screaming Natara's name as he went. But it had worked, the girl was entirely focused on him. And with her pinning him down, pushing her knees into his ribs, he pushed back.

* * *

><p>"Natara!" Kai yelled, and he could hear her respond. He rounded the corner and almost ran into her and Amy, and breathlessly said "Found her…Mal…in trouble…" without another word he took off running, Natara and Amy in his wake. They were just in time to see Mal tackle the girl into the banister, breaking it and plunging them both down to the first floor.<p>

* * *

><p>There were only a few things Mal registered as he fell. Natara's scream. Kai yelling his name. The girls hands wrapping around his throat and Amy screaming a name once. Not his name, but another.<p>

"Ken!".

And he knew, with this accidental switch, he was making her relive that moment. It wasn't him she saw falling, it was Ken. She was witnessing Ken's death all over again. But by the time he formed this thought, he had felt a bone-crushing pain as he was shoved into the girl as they hit the ground, and them everything went very dark.


	6. Final Hour

The world seemed to have plunged into silence. Natara was aware that she was screaming Mal's name, but her ears were roaring too much to hear it. She knew she must have been making a lot of noise as she clamped down the nearest staircase, but didn't really care. It didn't matter how much noise she made now, the danger had passed. "Mal!" she called after the still form of her partner.

But before she could reach him he slowly got up, his hand over his forehead. "I'm fine" she said. Natara sighed with relief, bending down to where Mal was. She could see blood seeping between his fingers, and after a moment he removed them from his forehead. There was a gash extending from above his nose, over his eye brow and to the side if his face. It was bleeding profusely, but didn't look detrimental. "That's gonna need stitches" be said, wiping some of the blood out of his eye. "What about her?". He nodded towards the girl, who had rolled slightly to the left of them. She was clearly dead, not surprising considering her age. The music box, which she clearly had tucked inside her jacket, had fallen out. It was broken, the top snapped off and the tiny gears attempting to work. Natara knew this must have been what cut Mal.

"What happened?" she said, already turning to Amy, who tossed her a roll of gauze from one of the boxes. Mal tried to swat her away at first, but eventually allowed her to wrap the gauze around his head and staunch the bleeding. "How'd you find her?".

Mal went on about the attic, the creepy pictures and Kai's apparent resemblance to someone named Alex.

"Do you know where it is?" Natara asked when he was done. She ripped the gauze and tied it off. Mal looked rather stupid with the gauze around his head, but at least the bleeding was slowing down.

"Yeah, just up the stairs from where you were attacked".

"I'm gonna go check it out" she said "you and Kai stay here, try and open the door, and I'll take Amy".

"What do you mean 'try and open the door'?" he asked.

"Amy and I went back to see if she'd been down here after we split up. The doors are locked from the outside, we think she doubled back and went through a back door somewhere. Unless you want to walk around to the car in the rain later".

"Fine".

Natara started to walk and Amy followed her, and as soon as they were out of earshot Natara asked "You okay?".

"What do you mean?" Amy asked "I'm fine".

"Don't pretend no one heard you. When you saw Mal falling, you called him Ken". Even thought they were half-way up the stairs, Amy froze. "Do you want to talk about it?".

"I don't know. I don't really know much of anything anymore. Every time I realize he's not coming back…I just think its all a dream. That I'll wake up and realize none of this has happened. Like none of this is real" Amy confessed. "When I saw Mal fall…I just don't know. It's like I'd gone back in time, like I had another chance, but I was too late. Again".

"You're healing. It's natural, and it may not seem like it now, but you're going to be okay" Natara said quietly.

"I think we both know I'd be lying if I said I believed you" she said. "You didn't really want to look at that attic for yourself, did you?".

Natara shook her head "I wanted to talk to you, alone. Because I know how hard it is to be surrounded by people who are alive, while someone you loved is missing. How everyone says they'll be there, and they are, but it's just hard to get them alone. And it's just too much to face a crowd. It's too much pressure". She sighed "I'm not even going to ask if you're okay again, because we both know the answer, I just want to know how you're doing".

"I–I just can't believe I'm never going to see him again" she said "It just didn't really hit me right away, like I didn't really believe he was gone. Then…at his funeral…" she trailed off.

"…It really sunk in" Natara finished for her, and Amy nodded. There was a long and awkward pause, and them Natara said "I think we're spend enough time 'looking at the attic'" she said "we should go back".

She started to head down the stairs, but Amy said quietly "Natara?". Natara turned around. "Thanks".

"For what?".

"Just…for everything". Then, as if on cue, there was a series of clicks. Then the house was filled with bright light, causing them to squint in pain from the sudden light. The power had come back on. The storm must have finally passed.

* * *

><p>It was only a week later that the entire story of Sammi Parker had been pieced together. By that point the cut above Mal's eye had healed, although had needed several stitches. In that time Amy, Kai, Mal and Natara had attained some sort of fame, having been the first survivors of 'The Lockdown' and ending the horrible tradition. In that time Kai, finding all the pieces of the music box, took it upon himself to try and fix it for some unknown reason. And it was for that reason, exactly a week from it's retrieval, that music spread across the entire station. It was the same, but also different. Several notes were clearer, the tempo faster. It sounded more like something a child would have, and less so something from a horror movie. After a few second of it's playing, Amy said it was creepy and made Kai close it. And for all anyone knew, that was the last time it opened.<p> 


End file.
